Life was designed to be lived in community.

Intro: Over the years Karol and I have had are challenges with
direction and reading maps when we go on a trip. Our first GPS was given to us
as a gift from this church; mainly they feared that Karol and I would avoid a
possible future argument when we travel. It is truly amazing the technology we
have at our figure tips. The Wise men used a GPS long before modern technology
did! God used a star to figure into the events surrounding the birth of His
Son. This is one of many instances in the Bible where God demonstrated His
sovereignty by doing something that went beyond the boundaries of our human
understanding. By providing a fabulous GPS system from outer space, God
enhanced the wise men’s determination to find the baby Jesus and worship Him.
God continues to use fabulous systems to find people who will worship Him. As
God used John the Baptist to be a witness for Christ, He expects the Church to
continue to be that witness of the return of Christ, and He will not be in a
manger or hanging on a tree.

The Wisemen saw the light and followed that light
until Christ was revealed to them and then they gave their gifts. “For God so
loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in
Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His
Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might
be saved.” John 3:16-17

Text: Matthew 2:1-12 (NKJV)

“Now after Jesus was born
in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the
East came to Jerusalem, 2 saying, "Where is He who has been born King of
the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship
Him." 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem
with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the
people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. 5 So they
said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the
prophet: 6 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among
the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My
people Israel.' " 7 Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men,
determined from them what time the star appeared. 8 And he sent them to
Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when
you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him
also." 9 When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star
which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over
where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced with
exceedingly great joy. 11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the
young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they
had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense,
and myrrh. 12 Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not
return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.”

Application
- There are still Wisemen following Christ today, are you one of them?

Three
men are revealed in this Narrative. We are all one of them!

1. The Not so Wiseman:
(Herod)

The Herod here is Herod the Great, who ruled as king from 37 to 4 BC.
He was an Edomite, not a Jew and he hoped to have favor from the Jews by
marrying one. He was a figure of heroic proportions, whose rebuilding of the
Jerusalem temple represented a major feat of ancient architecture, but whose
rule was authoritarian, ruthless, and cruel. Even to the extent of slaughtering
his own wife and children. He wasn’t a nice man! A jealous man to say the
least, and the possibility of someone else coming into his realm proclaiming
Kingship would be dealt harshly with. “Then Herod, when he saw that he was
deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to
death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts,
from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined
from the wise men.” Matthew 2:16

This not so Wiseman (Herod) showed a negative
light on this Christ Kingship. The hatred was written all over the pages.
Herod’s devious scheme to discover and destroy this unknown baby shows his fear
that the magi’s declaration about the Child could be correct, and gives unintended
testimony to Jesus’ true royalty. Herod knew that he was a dictator to be
reckoned with. But this Jewish King was a threat. He feared and hated even the
suggestion of a rival claimant. But even the hatred of the false king gave
indirect testimony to the identity of the true King.

In Christ time Herod was a
worldly King who would not allow any other person take his place as King or
have that kind of authority. For many of us in this world today, we still have
our own Herod, a Herod in another form, someone or thing that has authority
over us, something that does not want to see us live in Christ.

2. The God/Man:
(Jesus)

"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the
thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler
in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting." Micah
5:2

The central figure here is Christ Himself. One of the greatest promises
ever made to the human race is given in the prophecy from Micah 5:2. It is the
birth of the Messiah, the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. A Savior was coming
and would be born in the city of Bethlehem. Israel could have no greater hope
than this: the hope of the promised Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Bethlehem
or the area surrounding it was sometimes referred to as Ephrathah and Ephrath.
It was a small, insignificant town about five miles from Jerusalem. Imagine
such a Mighty King, the Savior of the world, coming from such a small and lowly
town! Why would the Lord choose Bethlehem for the birth of His beloved Son when
He could have chosen any city, any palace, in all the world? These verses
declare that the Lord uses the weak and lowly things of this world to confound
the wise and strong. And in His mercy, the Lord graciously redeems and lifts up
the lowly, despised things of this world to bring honor to His Name. No one can
boast; for it is God who makes the weak strong and the small great. It is God
who can make something out of nothing!

The choice of Bethlehem for the birth of
the Savior also teaches us an essential lesson about the character and purpose
of God. Christ came as a humble servant. He was born into an oppressed,
impoverished nation and into a small, insignificant town within that nation. In
addition, He was not born into a rich or powerful family but into a
working-class family. God Himself—in the form of the Man Jesus Christ—entered
the world He created. He did not come clothed as a mighty warrior or king to
conquer but came clothed in humility to serve. This is an astonishing fact, and
an honest and thinking person will recognize it as such. God, in Christ, came
to serve. Think of Christ’s humility in condescending to become a man. Think of
the humility He displayed in His character and behavior among the people.
Listen to what Scripture says about the humility of Christ. Micah predicted not
just where Christ would be born but also the great purpose for which He would
be sent into the world. God would send Christ to live among people for the
great cause of God Himself “unto me”. That is, Christ would be sent for the
glory and praise of God and to do God’s will. He would rule God’s people and
deliver them from all enemies.

The prophecy of Christ’s birth and coming rule
was meant to encourage and give hope to the people of Israel. The people desperately
needed hope because their time of judgment was drawing near. However, the
people did not fully understand the great promise given them. They failed to
grasp the importance of this great hope, to take it to heart and to change
their rebellious ways. Instead, they continued in their sin and rebellion.
Tragically, Micah’s prophecy—the great promise of the coming Messiah—had fallen
on deaf ears.

We must be careful to heed the message of God’s coming judgment.
And we must grab hold of the great hope the Lord has given us, the hope of the
promised Messiah. God has given the world a Savior; He has provided for us a
Redeemer. Our Savior and Redeemer is none other than God’s own beloved Son,
Jesus Christ. Micah tried to warn the people, but they refused to listen.
Still, every believer today has the responsibility to tell the story and to
warn all who are lost in a cesspool of sin: judgment is coming. However, there
is still time to repent and to turn to the Savior. But it will soon be too
late. Christ is coming back to earth and no one knows the day or the hour of
His return. “Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No
one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6

3. The Wiseman: (Wisemen)
"I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; A Star shall come out
of Jacob; A Scepter shall rise out of Israel, And batter the brow of Moab, And
destroy all the sons of tumult.” Numbers 24:17

Look at the character of the
wise men. They were great men. But their greatness is magnified by the greatness
of their faith and their moral courage. Faith is, after all, a kind of
heaven-born insight. These men saw the star. There were thousands about them
who looked upon the same star, and saw no meaning in it. It led them through
the long desert to kneel before the Satisfier of their hopes. So it is with
Christ's children in this world. They see by an insight of faith what other men
do not see. There is a light that others do not see, there is a hand that
others cannot perceive, and there is a voice that others cannot hear, that
calls them to go forward.

The success of the wise men in their search for the
Saviour should teach us that they who are really anxious to find Him will never
miss Him for lack of proper guidance. The example of the wise men should make
us ashamed of allowing difficulties, or even dangers, to hinder us in our
search for the Saviour. God graciously adapts His guidance to the necessities
of His creatures. The technology of the GPS system has always been. God’s plan
of salvation still requires Wisemen who will witness for Christ! Just look for
the star! We have seen the star the glorious star of the Epiphany. So have we
like the Wisemen come to the Saviour to worship Him?

"Where is He who has
been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come
to worship Him." Matthew 2:2 "Where is He?" The answer came at
Epiphany. Among the wild Bethlehem hills was born One who was a light to
lighten the Gentiles, who was come to give the knowledge of salvation to His
people, to set the captive free, to make the poor, crushed slave a man indeed,
to wipe away the tears of the sorrowful, to heal the sick, and to raise from
the dead those who lay in trespasses and sins. Surely this is what the Epiphany
teaches us, that the true life of every one of us is revealed in the life of
Jesus Christ; that to be humble, to be gentle, to be obedient, to go about
doing good, and to perform God's will in our daily work, is to be like Him whom
the wise men worshipped long ages ago in Bethlehem. "Where is He?"
Not only in heaven, pleading, as our great High Priest, the unfailing merits of
His sacrifice, but here on earth, with His faithful Church.

Whatever more there
may be, and there is much more in the visit of the wise men to the manger-cradle
at Bethlehem, there is at least the lesson of consecration. These wise men
prostrated themselves before this little Child. They did not keep their wisdom
to themselves. They had no greater joy than in emptying themselves of their
treasures, and bestowing them in humblest adoration upon Him. To every man
there comes the old choice to be wise or not to be.

Conclusion:

Are we like the
wise men, in that, when children, we too have a sort of star in the East to
guide us towards the cradle of our Lord? We are carried to church, we are
taught to pray, we learn more or less of Scripture words and histories; God
gives us notice, in various ways, of that wonderful Child who was born at
Bethlehem to be King of the Jews. Now these notices and feelings, if they are
indeed sent by the Most High, will guide us, more or less directly, to
Jerusalem, that is, to the Holy Church of God, the city set on a hill that
cannot be hid. Is that GPS working for you? Have you seen the star? Are you
truly worshipping????

The Not so Wiseman is the Lost Man, the Wiseman is the
saved man and the God/Man is Jesus Christ. JOHN 3:16-17 ‘ARE YOU THAT WITNESS?”